Master of Wine Discusses MCLAREN VALE, One of the World’s Great Wine Regions

[@tristramshandy9326]

I'm lucky enough to live in Adelaide, and McLaren Vale is truly an overlooked wine region (not by me) - but not for shiraz and cabernet - for bush vine grenache. This grape is really the star of McLaren Vale - particularly the grenache from the Blewitt Springs subregion. The other glory of McLaren Vale is/are the cellar doors - all within a few minutes of each other. They all used to be no charge venues, but this has been slowly changing unfortunately. However, at places like Samuel's Gorge you can get to taste some of the best that the Vale has to offer in a beautiful rustic location without spending a penny. And kudos for getting behind the screw cap revolution that has been such a great innovation here in Australia. I'm a total convert.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Thank you for the comment, good firsthand information. When I lived in Australia, Grenache was my go to wine. Later this year, I should be back for a visit with McLaren Vale at the top of my list. Cheers 🍷

[@wiskaki24]

Great video Bob. McLaren Vale is without a doubt one of Australia's best wine regions. Traditionally know for Shiraz, but most of the excitement in the region is in the Grenache wines being produced there. This is especially the case those from the Blewitt Springs sub-region of McLaren Vale. They are elegant and beautifully fragrant.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Michael, thank you for the good word. A few months ago while in Malaysia, I had The Absconder Grenache from Wirra Wirra. Very enjoyable. I don’t recall having any wines from Bleeitt Springs.I’ll research it. Much appreciated.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Looks like I fat fingered Blewitt Springs. Dam iPhone keypad! 😂

[@memomur3966]

Thanks Bob! great video, I wished there was a larger presence of premium Aussie wines in the US! I understand Syrah has been a focus for them, but I love the Cabs as well!

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Glad you enjoyed the video. Australia is primed for a comeback in the US. I’m aware of several smaller artisanal wineries that will be sold here soon. I’m also a big fan of Aussie Cab, Grenache can also be outstanding.

[@wiskaki24]

The Cabs from Margaret River and Coonawarra can be outstanding.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

@@wiskaki24 I agree. I’ve had many from both places, also Margaret River Chard!

[@nikolaj-si1so]

I like Australien wine. Recently i discovered that they make some oustanding Pinot Noirs at reasonbly Prices too. In my opinion screw caps is a great closurre of wines. You avoid the annoying risk that the wine is corked and as far as i know they age just as well as Cork sealed vines.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Thanks for the comment. For Pinot Noir from Australia, look for the Mornington Peninsula. Very good, not the easiest to find. Screw cap wines can age well, but somewhat differently than cork.

[@benedictkang8265]

Heya Bob, great video! Our problem here in Australia is that it’s impossible to get our hands on US wines (and unfortunately, the ones that do end up landing on our shores and in our stores don’t really do the appellations justice!) … but agree that McLaren is often overlooked. Another underrated Australian wine region deadset has to be Margaret River in Western Australia - some serious wine coming out of that area at incredible price points.

[@benedictkang8265]

Also FWIW, I prefer screw-caps over cork for wine the same way I prefer aluminium cans over glass bottles for beer … they tend to minimise risk of faults developing and you don’t have to be so precious about how you store it all.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Benedict, thanks for the good word. I’m a huge fan of Margaret River. In the US it has a stronger presence than McLaren Vale. As for US wines being sold in Australia, it’s a weak lineup. Some very high end, but not much in the mid range. About the best thing going there is the wines from Wente.

[@Matt_Bykowski]

Hi Bob, I recently discovered your YT channel and have really enjoyed all the content. In particular, the Costco and Trader Joe’s videos. On a tight budget, those are the most enlightening & relevant for me. I’m hoping you’ll consider doing a blind, budget cabernet sauvignon. I like cabs, but need to keep under $12 on something for routine/”daily” drinking. Also, I agree, screw caps are great. Corks are nice for presentation with others, but just having a glass after a long day, screw it 😊. Thanks for the great videos, please keep it up. Cheers! Matt

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Matt, thanks for the good word. I’m glad you found my channel. Good to see another “ski”! 😂 Today, a new Costco video is being released. I’ll look at doing a video like the one you suggested.

[@Matt_Bykowski]

@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine Awesome news to me. Thanks. I guess neither of us can spell toboggaEn.

[@byronkwok-hu6pp]

Australian subscriber here, McLaren Vale is an exceptional region. So glad you love Australian wine!

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Byron, I’m an advocate for Australian wine. More people need to know about it. Thanks for subscribing!

[@byronkwok-hu6pp]

@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine if you ever get the chance you must try Noon winery reserve Shiraz made by another MW alumni, Drew Noon. Incredible wine which can be hard to find even here. But a fantastic example of the heights of Shiraz/syrah!

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

@@byronkwok-hu6pp Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve not seen that one in the US, but I’ll do a bit of research on it.

[@tristramshandy9326]

@@byronkwok-hu6pp Better still the Eclipse!

[@carlcadregari7768]

Great video. Screw caps are perfectly great for wines. Allows the wine to maintain its youth. But (I’m sure you know) there are variable oxygen transmission rate (OTR) screw caps that can allow the bottle aging too which the wine geek in me loves. South Australia is a great area to explore. Thank you

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Carl, thanks for the positive comment. I’m a big fan of screw caps. I know the science has advanced with the oxygen transmission. South Australia was a great place to visit. So many excellent wines. Curious, when was the last time you had a wine impacted by cork taint. For me, it’s been a long time, over a year. Diam is doing great things with eliminating problem corks.

[@carlcadregari7768]

@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine corked….I seem to go in spurts. Last two were just in January. 04 Pio Cesare Barolo and an 08 Lopez de Heredia gran reserva rosado….😢😢. The shop I got the barolo from replaced it with a similar wine, no questions, the shop I got the lopez from ghosted me when I let them know…..so, won’t be shopping there again. And I did have a Aussie rose under screw cap that had TCA too. The shop confirmed it and was as shocked as I was, must have been the bottling plant. I probably have 4 or 5 a year. But I open or taste (classes, tasting group, training) 400+ bottles a year….

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

@@carlcadregari7768 Over the years, I've had a few screw cap wines with TCA. The winery is the source. Rare, but can happen. It's bad when you're ghosted by a wine shop!

[@carlcadregari7768]

@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine yeah…I’ll never get anything from them again.

[@YBenjamin1996]

I'm becoming fascinated by Aussie wines. Both by how well integrated oak often is when used on red wine compared to wine from the US, and also by how well priced the wine can be after being shipped from Austraulia to North America! That being said, I have tried some California cabs which have been far more balanced and joyful than I expected after being used to poorer California examples. Thanks for sharing!

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Same here, I’m a big fan of Australian wine. In my opinion, the average quality of Aussie wine is excellent. I’ve rarely had a truly poor Australian wine. Also, I agree with the Aussie costs being very competitive. China was the major trading partner, that stopped when tariffs were imposed. Also, the favorable current exchange rate helps to keep the prices in check.

[@jamescipriano204]

Another great video! Looking forward to picking up a bottle and giving it a try. Keep the videos coming. Salute

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi James, thanks for the positive comment. Not sure where you’re located, hopefully it’s a place where they export. I know in the US it’s hit and miss, but they are making a strong play to have a better presence in the US, but my guess it’ll be the back half of 2023.

[@duncanwmaxwell]

Hi Bob, great to see you do an Australian video, now for Victoria, then Tas 😜. While you’re right, there vast majority of wine here is screwcapped (and some interesting studies being undertaken on ageing under screwcap) a number of the emerging/alternative/artisanal producers are returning to cork, I guess as a point of difference or to increase the ritual 😆.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Duncan, I’ll definitely post more videos on Australia. Later this week in San Francisco, I’ll meet the people from Brand’s Laira for a separate work project. Maybe I can do something on Coonawarra. Victoria and Tassie would be good, maybe Margaret River as well. I’ll need to research who has chosen to use cork. And yes, the studies of aging under screw cap are quite interesting. Thanks for the comment.

[@duncanwmaxwell]

@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine have a check - of high profile producers, By Farr and Bass Phillip are under cork here in Victoria. But it’s noticeable among younger, alternative producers striking a point of difference.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

@@duncanwmaxwell Thanks for that. A few days ago, I tasted through a range of Coonawarra wines. Brand and Sons top range showed well. Many under cork.

[@duncanwmaxwell]

@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine hope you’ve a Coonawarra video coming soon, interested to hear more on that. Planning a trip across to Coonawarra soon!

[@briand2614]

My relatives in Scotland introduced me to Australian Wine in the early 90’s, the selection seemed broader in the UK. Odd Bins was an interesting store to visit and I did drag a few bottles home. I was fortunate enough to visit Adelaide in 2016 and a few of the wineries. However I confess that I don’t buy that much Australian anymore. Selection seems more limited these days in my area, and with alcohol levels pushing 16% of some wines it’s too much for my tastes. As for screw caps? I think they are great and have never passed on a wine because it had one. Interestingly Plumpjack Winery was experimenting with them about 20 years ago on their Reserve (2001 vintage??) bottling. You could buy with either a cork or screw cap. I’m not sure how well it was received or if they are still using them. Would be interesting to compare a 20+ year old wine with the a cap to a cork.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Brian, back in the day, Odd Bins was a great place. The Australian range is more limited in many places, but that seems to be changing with the emergence of more smaller production, artisanal wines. In many SE Asian countries, the Aussie range is excellent. Also seeing an uptick in the US. And I do recall Plumpjack offering a screw cap option years ago. Not sure how that played out.

[@nickyang1143]

How do you find aged Shiraz? I've found that aging Shiraz doesn't offer the same returns as cab. Love the videos, keep up the amazing work😊😊

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Nick, thank you for the kind words. As for aging Shiraz, it’s all about which ones. Speaking in broad general terms, CS will have a longer life. If you find low yield, older vine Shiraz, it’s worth cellaring. Cheers. 🍷

[@mawan9947]

Thanks for you video Bob, always interesting topic and region that you highlighted on your videos, also love the fact that you recommend good producers to try out from the region, cheers!

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Felix, so nice of you. There are certainly a good number of noteworthy producers from McLaren Vale.

[@kevinbutterfield9128]

The yarra valley is also amazing

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Yes it is, I went there often when I lived in Melbourne.

[@bobbyzitting6465]

I love screw caps on any wine that you want to stay very fresh like Suv Blanc, but I have always wondered how that effects aging for premium wines that are meant to age, and I have to admit on the higher end wines I tend to go for wines under cork as I do like the ritual of uncorking a bottle. I know it's just a romantcized thing that doesn't effect the wine but I am human.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Same here, big fan of screw caps, especially for fresh bright styles of wine. For aging, I think the verdict is still out. New versions of screw cap can allow for a tiny ingress of air, much like cork.

[@baggrabb]

In answer to your question: I love screwcaps, I wish more winemakers did it. Wine lovers are so tradition-bound, and my guess is most of us just won't give up the cork. Great video, I'm starting to branch out to Australian wines, but don't currently hold any McClaren Vale wines. I'm a newbie to them, for sure. I tried a 2020 Penfolds Bin 28 Shiraz recently, it was great but I felt like I committed infanticide--the tannins were so strong and pronounced--the other bottle I'm holding for at least a couple more years. Is that just me, or is that a thing with their style of winemaking?

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Hi Bruce, it’s good you’re looking into McLaren Vale. Some of the best wines from Australia. As for the Penfolds, I’m not quite sure what to say. Typically with Aussie wines, the tannins are well integrated and quite soft. If you try another soon, air it out, you should be good.

[@longhaulblue]

A corked bottle is laid on its side so the cork is kept moist. Does this mean you don't need to lay a screw-top bottle on its side?

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Yes, a screw cap bottle can be stored upright.

[@davidanderson2256]

Get into McLaren Vale Grenache

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

Love it. Very under appreciated 🍷

[@mbos4115]

This is very informative! Thanks for doing this, definitely helped me on my WSET study.

[@bobpaulinskimasterofwine]

I’m glad you found it informative. Best of luck with the WSET.